After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Congress created the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The idea was to improve the coordination of the federal government’s counterterrorism effort, but the result has been an ever-expanding bureaucracy. In a new paper, Cato scholar David Rittgers argues that the DHS should be abolished: “Instead of pandering to fear and overreacting to every potential threat, policymakers should keep the risk of terrorist attacks in perspective and focus public resources on cost-effective measures.”

Since 9/11, America’s standing in the world has fallen to dangerously low levels, with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan contributing significantly to this decline. On the tenth anniversary of the September 11th attacks, Cato looks back at the legacy of 9/11 on U.S. foreign policy.

The Bush and Obama administrations’ efforts to prevent another major terrorist attack have created an alarming imbalance between security concerns and the protection of personal freedoms. Cato scholars reflect upon the civil liberties legacy of 9/11:

Ponzi Scheme Pedigree
Rosslyn Smith
It is instructive to look at where that term has been used before to describe the American Social Security system and by whom. More

The Businessman Versus the Career Politician
J. Robert Smith
Whom do Republican voters want as president, asked Romney: a businessman like him or a career politician like Perry? A slam-dunk choice for career politician-averse GOP voters, you say? More

Andre Carson’s Racist Family Ties
M. Catharine Evans
It should be no surprise the representative from Indiana’s 7th district fabricated racial incidents in 2010 and used KKK imagery last week to smear the Tea Party. More

In My Backyard
Jim Gammon
In my backyard, things are different from the world we see in the media. Life in my backyard makes sense to me and my family, it’s a simple place. More

Defense: Neglected, Ignored, And Marginalized
Zbigniew Mazurak
This neglect of, and disinterest in, defense by the electorate and the political class alike has helped cause the low state of readiness of the U.S. military today and made it easier for opponents of a strong defense to gut it. Here’s how. More